Newsfeed

THAI ordered to pay Piyasvasti Bt1m damages

The Labour Court yesterday ruled that board of Thai Airways International (THAI) pay a compensation of Bt1 million to axed former THAI president Piyasvasti Amranand.

In June 2012, Piyasvasti sued THAI in the Labour Court for injustice by terminating his employment a year before he had completed his four-year term on July 11, 2013. He had demanded that the company pay more than Bt10 million in compensation or reinstate him.

According to the court ruling yesterday, the termination of his contract by the board had damaged him. As such, the board has to pay compensation to him of Bt1 million, plus 7.5 per cent interest per annum on Bt1 million, from the date of the lawsuit on June 21, 2012. The court did not grant the other requests of the plaintiff.

high dividend payout

Listed companies in Stock Exchange of Thailand recorded total revenue of Bt11.52 trillion and net profit of Bt778.5 billion at the end of 2013, up 11.3 per cent and 12.1 per cent respectively from 2012, according to the Stock Exchange of Thailand.

Forty-four firms have announced payment of dividend totalling Bt380 billion from their financial results last year. The payments are the highest in seven years, the report said.

meet on merger

The shareholders of Picnic Corporation and World Gas (Thailand) Co will hold an extra-general meeting of shareholders on June 6, 2014 to approve the amalgamation of the two companies.

They also will ask the shareholders to change the name after the merger to MergedCo Plc and also inform about its capital, the allocation of shares, its memorandum of understanding and articles of association and other related issues. After the merger is complete, the new company will be the second-largest liquid petroleum gas (LPG) firm in the market.

nod to issue sought

CP All, a retail arm of Charoen Pokphand Group and operator of 7-Eleven convenience stores, is seeking its shareholders' approval to issue another Bt90-billion worth debentures to refinance its loans used to acquire Siam Makro.

The new debentures will be added to its existing debentures worth Bt90 billion, issued previously by the company resulting in total debenture value of Bt180 billion.

The company also has a plan to reduce its stake in Siam Makro to 51 per cent, which is the lowest level for realising its financial performance, within the next two years, after succeeding in increasing the value of its acquired stake in Siam Makro for profit-making.

CP All earned Bt284 billion in sales revenue last year, up 43.9 per cent from the previous year. The company, however, posted a 4.6-per-cent drop to about Bt10.5 billion in net profit last year due to increase in expenditure and interest burden.

He added that previously, the expected timing of the SEC approval for securities offerings or fund establishment, as well as projected profits of listed companies from the fund establishment have been covered by the media. It is, therefore, important to clarify that approval for any securities offering or fund establishment will be certain only when the applicants receive the SEC's official letter.